Cordless Hand-Held Rechargeable Vacuum Cleaner and Charger Unit Therefore

ABSTRACT

A cordless hand-held rechargeable vacuum cleaner and a charging base unit for the vacuum cleaner is disclosed. The vacuum cleaner charging unit is configured to receive electrical power from a USB port, such as a USB port located on a computer. The charging unit can also be configured to receive power from an external power supply that includes a USB port which allows the base unit to be charged from a standard electrical outlet via the external power supply. The vacuum cleaner is useful for cleaning around computers and other electrical equipment, and can be easily gripped by a person&#39;s hand.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 61/036,732 entitled CORDLESS HAND-HELD RECHARGEABLEVACUUM CLEANER AND CHARGER UNIT THEREFOR filed Mar. 14, 2008 theentirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

This disclosure is related to the vacuum cleaner arts, and moreparticularly to a cordless hand-held rechargeable vacuum cleaner,hereinafter also referred to simply as a vacuum cleaner, and a chargingbase unit for the vacuum cleaner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a cordless hand-held rechargeablevacuum cleaner received by a charging unit.

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG. 1received in the charging unit.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the vacuum cleaner and thecharging unit depicted in FIG. 1, along with an external power supplyfor providing power to the charging unit.

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG.1.

FIG. 5 is rear perspective view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG. 4.FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines A-A of FIG. 16.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged lower perspective view of a filter assembly foundin the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a front perspective view of the charging unit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is an upper rear perspective view of the charging unit shown inFIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a reduced top plan view of the vacuum cleaner and chargingunit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a reduced front end view of the vacuum cleaner and chargingunit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 12 is a reduced cross-sectional view taken along lines A-A in FIG.10.

FIG. 13 is a reduced rear end elevation view of the vacuum cleaner andcharging unit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 14 is a reduced side elevation view of the vacuum cleaner andcharging unit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 15 is a reduced bottom plan view of the vacuum cleaner and chargingunit shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 16 is a reduced top plan view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIGS.1 and 4.

FIG. 17 is a reduced front end view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIGS.1 and 4.

FIG. 18 is a reduced rear end view of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIGS.1 and 4.

FIG. 19 is a reduced side elevation view of the vacuum cleaner shown inFIGS. 1 and 4.

FIG. 20 is a reduced bottom plan view of the vacuum cleaner shown inFIGS. 1 and 4.

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 6 depicting thesuction path through the vacuum cleaner.

FIG. 22 is a top plan view of the vacuum cleaner with an upper housinghalf removed from a lower housing half to show internal components ofthe vacuum cleaner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a cordless hand-held rechargeablevacuum cleaner 10, hereinafter referred to as a vacuum cleaner, is shownreceived in a charging unit 12 (also referred to as a charging base).The vacuum cleaner is useful for cleaning around computers and otherelectrical equipment. Of course, the vacuum cleaner 10 can be used in avariety of other environments as well. The charging unit 12 isconfigured to receive electrical power from a USB port, for example aUSB port located on a computer. The charging unit 12 is also configuredto receive power from an external power supply 14 (FIG. 3) that includesa USB port which allows the base unit to be charged from a standardelectrical outlet via the external power supply.

With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the vacuum cleaner 10 includes acontoured housing 20 that is shaped to be easily gripped by a person'shand. Accordingly, the housing 20 can provide a handle for the vacuumcleaner 10. The vacuum cleaner 10 includes a suction inlet 22 at one endof the housing 20 and an exhaust 24 at an opposite end. Having theexhaust 24 located adjacent an end of the housing 20 allows an operatorto use the vacuum cleaner as a blower. When used as a blower, the vacuumcleaner can be used to clean keyboards or other equipment that istypically cleaned using a can of compressed air. In other words, bysimply reversing the orientation of the vacuum cleaner 10 as held in thehand of the user, either the suction end or the exhaust end of thevacuum cleaner can be employed for the desired purpose.

With reference back to FIG. 3, the housing 20 in the depicted embodimentcomprises an upper housing half 26 that fastens to a lower housing half28 using fasteners 32. Of course, the upper housing half 26 and thelower housing half 28 can be attached to one another in otherconventional manners, e.g. sonic welding.

With continued reference to FIG. 3, a front inlet 34 is trapped betweenthe upper housing half 26 and the lower housing half 28 (see also FIG.6). The front inlet 34 includes an opening 36, which defines a portionof a suction path of the vacuum cleaner. The suction path will bedescribed in more detail below. A dust cup 38 attaches to the frontinlet 34 upstream (forward towards the suction inlet 22) from theopening 36. With reference to FIG. 6, the dust cup 38 includes at leastone flange 42 that cooperates with a flange 44 formed on the front inlet34 to retain the dust cup 38 to the front inlet. An operator of thevacuum cleaner 10 can remove the dust cup 38 by rotating the dust cup sothat the flange 42 of the dust cup no longer contacts the flange 44 ofthe front inlet 34, which allows the dust cup to be removed from thefront inlet. The dust cup 38 defines the suction inlet 22 for the vacuumcleaner 10.

A flapper or inlet valve 50 is received in the dust cup 38 and blocksthe suction path just downstream from the suction inlet 22. Withreference to FIG. 6, stakes 52 are provided in the dust cup 38 and theflapper 50 includes openings 54 (FIG. 3) for receiving the stakes 52 toattach the flapper inside the dust cup. The flapper 50 is drawn in tothe dust cup 38, unblocking the suction path, in response to air beingdrawn into the dust cup 38. When no suction is exerted on the dust cup,the flapper 50 will revert back to its closed position. The dust cup 38also includes a ledge 56 against which the flapper 50 rests when air isnot being drawn into the dust cup 38.

A fan assembly is provided in the housing 20 of the vacuum cleaner 10 todraw air through the suction path. As seen in FIG. 3, the fan assemblyincludes a motor 60, a diffuser 62, an impeller 64, a fan top 66, and afan cover 68. An output shaft 72 of the motor 60 is inserted through acentral opening 74 of the diffuser 62 to be received in a centralopening 76 of the impeller 64 to connect the motor to the impeller. Thefan top 66 includes a central opening 78 that defines a portion of thesuction path. The fan cover 68 includes a forwardly extending tubularprojection 82 that bends (see FIG. 6) and defines a passage 84 throughthe fan cover to further define the suction path.

As more clearly seen in FIG. 6, the diffuser 62 includes a rearwardlyextending bore 90 that is configured to receive the motor 60. Thediffuser 62 is trapped between the upper housing half 26 and the lowerhousing half 28. The diffuser 62 includes radial vanes 94 (FIG. 3) thatdefine passages 96 that define a portion of the suction path to enableair drawn through the vacuum cleaner to bypass the motor 60. The designof the suction path also provides a means for cooling the motor andother electrical components in the vacuum cleaner.

In the embodiment shown, the fan cover 68 engages the diffuser 62 and isalso trapped between the upper housing half 26 and the lower housinghalf 28. The fan top 66 is received in the fan cover 68 to cover theimpeller 64. Due to the contoured shape of the housing 20, the tubularextension 82 of the fan cover 68 is smoothly bent to direct air alongthe curved suction path through the vacuum cleaner. The fan cover 82engages the front inlet 34 and is trapped between the upper housing half26 and the lower housing half 28. Accordingly, the motor 60, the fandiffuser 62, the fan top 66, and the fan cover 68 are all fixed in thehousing 20 between the upper housing half 26 and the lower housing half28.

In the depicted embodiment, the motor 60 is electrically driven. Abattery housing 100 is received in the housing 20 between the upperhousing half 26 and the lower housing half 28. Electrical contacts 102and 104 are disposed at opposite ends of the battery housing 100. Abattery 106, which in the depicted embodiment is a rechargeable lithiumbattery, is received in the battery housing 100 to provide electricalpower to the motor 60. The battery contacts 102 and 104 are electricallyconnected to a printed circuit board (PCB) assembly 108, which iselectrically connected to vacuum cleaner charging contacts 112 and theelectrical motor 60. The vacuum cleaner contacts 112 connect to a lowerportion of the fan cover 68 and extend through a notch 114 formed at aforward edge of the lower housing half 28. A switch 116 (FIG. 6) isfound on the printed circuit board assembly 108 to control the deliveryof electrical energy from the battery 106 to the motor 60.

A button cover 118 including an integrally formed axle 122 and aprotuberance 124 covers an opening 126 formed through the lower housinghalf 28. The axle 122 is received by inwardly extending catches 128formed on an inner surface of the lower housing half 28. The buttoncover 118 pivots about a rotational axis of the axle 122. A spring 132engages against a lower surface of the battery housing 100 to urge thebutton cover 118 away from the switch 116. An indicator light 134 isconnected to the PCB assembly 108. A fuse 136 is also in electricalcommunication with the PCB assembly 108. The fuse 136 protects the motor60 from power surges.

With reference to FIG. 21, air is drawn through the suction inlet 22 andout the exhaust 24. An operator grips the housing 20 (the housing beingsmall enough so that a person's hand can surround or nearly surround thehousing) and presses the button cover 118, which results in electricalpower being delivered from the battery 106 to the motor 60. This resultsin the impeller 64 turning drawing air through the suction inlet 22,which displaces the flapper 50 so that it no longer blocks the suctionpath. Air is drawn in to the dust cup 38 and through a filter assembly140, which includes a filter frame 142 and a filter 144 (depicted inphantom in FIG. 7) which will be described in more detail below. The airthen passes through the passage 84 of the fan cover 68 and the opening78 (FIG. 3) of the fan top 66. As the impeller 64 rotates filtered airis pushed through the passages 96 between the vanes 94 of the diffuser62 and around the motor 60 traveling through the housing 20 between theupper housing 26 and the lower housing 28 towards and the exhaust 24. Asmentioned above, the vacuum cleaner 10 can also be used as a blower toremove dust between crevices and other hard to reach places.

With reference to FIG. 7, the filter assembly 140 is shown with thefilter 144 attached to the filter frame 142. The filter 144 can be madefrom cellulosic materials like paper, and polymeric materials likenylon, polypropylene and the like for a filter material form ofdiscontinuous fibers or continuous woven fibers. The filter 144 can heatbonded or glued to the filter frame 142. The filter frame 142 includes acircular peripheral ledge 146 that extends outwardly from a cylindricaltubular section 148. With reference to FIG. 6, the peripheral ledge 146is trapped between an internal shoulder 152 formed in the dust cup 38and the front inlet 34 when the dust cup 38 is attached to the frontinlet. A notch 154 is formed in the peripheral ledge 146 and cooperateswith the shoulder 152 formed in the dust cup 38 to properly align thefilter assembly 140 in the vacuum cleaner 10. An upper circular flarededge 156 of an annular flange 158 that extends upwardly from the ledge146 also engages the dust cup 38 (see FIG. 6) to retain the filterassembly 140 in the vacuum cleaner. The tubular section 148 defines apassage 160 that also defines a portion of the suction path. An upper(downstream) edge 162 of the tubular section 146 is flared outwardly toengage the front inlet 34. A U-shaped strut 164 extends upwardly(downstream) from the upper flared edge 162 of the tubular section 148and substantially bisects the suction path. The filter 144 attaches toan external surface of an upstream section, with respect to the ledge148, of the tubular section 148. The filter 144 folds over an upstreamcircular edge of the tubular section 146 and extends into and throughthe passage 160. The filter attaches to the U-shaped strut 164.Alternatively, the filter 144 could be attached over the upper edge 162of the tubular section 148 and draped over the U-shaped 164 with thefilter being secured to both of them if so desired.

In this embodiment, the filter 144 is disposed downstream from the dustcup 38 and resides in the curved passage 84 of the fan cover 68. Thefilter assembly 140 is also removable from the vacuum cleaner 10. Whenthe dust cup 38 is detached from the front inlet 34, the filter assembly140 is removed with the dust cup. The filter assembly 140 can then bedetached from the dust cup (so that the dust cup can be emptied) andcleaned as desired. Also, the filter assembly 140 can be sold as aseparate unit from the vacuum cleaner 10 as a replacement part.

With reference back to FIG. 3, a crevice tool 170 and a dusting brushassembly 172 can also be provided with the vacuum cleaner 10. Withreference to FIG. 6, the crevice tool 170 can be received inside thedusting brush assembly 172 and the dusting brush assembly can engage anupper flange 176 that depends downwardly from the upper housing half 26and a lower flange 178 that extends upwardly from the lower housing half28. Accordingly, the crevice tool 170 and the dusting brush assembly 172can be stored adjacent the exhaust 24 of the vacuum cleaner. The crevicetool 170 and the dusting brush assembly 172 can be removed from thehousing 20 and each can be inserted into the inlet 22.

With reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the charging unit 12 includes a housing200 that defines a receptacle 202 to receive the dust cup end of thevacuum cleaner 10. When the dust cup end of the vacuum cleaner 10 isreceived in the receptacle 202 (see FIGS. 1 and 2), the battery 106 canbe recharged.

With reference back to FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the charging unithousing 200 includes an upper housing half 210 that attaches to a lowerhousing half 212 via conventional fasteners 214. Charging base feet 216cover the fasteners 214. A charging base inner housing 218 is trappedbetween the upper housing 210 and a lower housing 212 and defines thereceptacle 202 (FIG. 9).

Charging base contacts 218 are received in slots 222 defined betweenupwardly extending flanges 224 formed in the lower base unit housing212. These contacts 218 are electrically connected to a charging baseprinted circuit board assembly 226 that attaches to the lower chargingunit housing 212 using fasteners 228. A USB cable 232 connects to thePCB assembly 226 and extends outwardly from the housing 200 (FIG. 9)through aligned notches 234 and 236 formed in the upper charging unithousing 210 and the lower charging unit housing 212, respectively. TheUSB cable 232 can be inserted into a USB port found on a computer tocharge the battery 106. Alternatively, the USB cable 232 can be receivedin the USB port (not visible) found in the external power supply 14 sothat the vacuum cleaner can be charged directly from a standard walloutlet.

A cordless hand-held rechargeable vacuum cleaner and a charging unithave been described with particularity. Modifications and alternationswill occur to those upon reading and understanding the precedingdetailed description. The invention is not limited to only thoseembodiments disclosed above. Instead, the invention is defined by theappended claims and the equivalents thereof.

1. A hand-held rechargeable cordless vacuum cleaner.
 2. A charging unitfor a hand-held rechargeable cordless vacuum cleaner, wherein thecharging unit includes a USB cable.
 3. A cordless vacuum cleaner thatcan be also used as a blower.